Design, modelling, simulation and integration of cyber physical systems: methods and applications

The main drivers for the development and evolution of Cyber Physical Systems (CPS) are the reduction of development costs and time along with the enhancement of the designed products. The aim of this survey paper is to provide an overview of different types of system and the associated transition process from mechatronics to CPS and cloud-based (IoT) systems. It will further consider the requirement that methodologies for CPS-design should be part of a multi-disciplinary development process within which designers should focus not only on the separate physical and computational components, but also on their integration and interaction. Challenges related to CPS-design are therefore considered in the paper from the perspectives of the physical processes, computation and integration respectively. Illustrative case studies are selected from different system levels starting with the description of the overlaying concept of Cyber Physical Production Systems (CPPSs). The analysis and evaluation of the specific properties of a sub-system using a condition monitoring system, important for the maintenance purposes, is then given for a wind turbine.

Comprehensive economic and financial analysis of the enterprise activity: approaches, methods and implementation

This thesis intends to analyse the performance and the efficiency of companies and to identify the key factors that may explain it. A comprehensive analysis based on a set of economic and financial ratios was studied as an instrument which provides information on enterprise performance and its efficiency. It was selected a sample with 15 enterprises: 7 Portuguese and 8 Ukrainian ones, belonging to several industries. Financial and non-financial data was collected for 6 years, during the period of 2009 to 2014. Research questions that guided this work were: Are the enterprises efficient/profitable? What factors influence enterprises��� efficiency/performance? Is there any difference between Ukrainian and Portuguese enterprises��� efficiency/performance, which factors have more influence? Which industrial sector is represented by more efficient/profitable enterprises? The main results showed that in average enterprises were efficient; comparing by states Ukrainian enterprises are more efficient; industries have similar level of efficiency. Among factors that influence ATR positively are fixed and current assets turnover ratios, ROA; negatively influencing are EBITDA margin and liquidity ratio. There is no significant difference between models by country. Concerning profitability, enterprises have low performance level but in comparison of countries Ukrainian enterprises have better profitability in average. Regarding the industry sector, paper industry is the most profitable. Among factors influencing ROA are profit margin, fixed asset turnover ratio, EBITDA margin, Debt to equity ratio and the country. In case of profitability both countries have different models. For Ukrainian enterprises is suggested to pay attention on factors of Short-term debt to total debt, ROA, Interest coverage ratio in order to be more efficient; Profit margin and EBITDA margin to make their performance better. For Portuguese enterprises for improving efficiency the observation and improvement of fixed assets turnover ratio, current assets turnover ratio, Short-term financial debt to total debt, Leverage Ratio, EBITDA margin is suggested; for improving higher profitability track fixed assets turnover ratio, current assets turnover ratio, Debt to equity ratio, Profit margin and Interest coverage ratio is suggested.

The acquisition of adjunct control: grammar and processing

This dissertation uses children���s acquisition of adjunct control as a case study to investigate grammatical and performance accounts of language acquisition. In previous research, children have consistently exhibited non-adultlike behavior for sentences with adjunct control. To explain children���s behavior, several different grammatical accounts have been proposed, but evidence for these accounts has been inconclusive. In this dissertation, I take two approaches to account for children���s errors. First, I spell out the predictions of previous grammatical accounts, and test these predictions after accounting for some methodological concerns that might have influenced children���s behavior in previous studies. While I reproduce the non-adultlike behavior observed in previous studies, the predictions of previous grammatical accounts are not borne out, suggesting that extragrammatical factors are needed to explain children���s behavior. Next, I consider the role of two different types of extragrammatical factors in predicting children���s non-adultlike behavior. With a new task designed to address the task demands in previous studies, children exhibit significantly higher accuracy than with previous tasks. This suggests that children���s behavior has been influenced by task- specific processing factors. In addition to the task, I also test the predictions of a similarity-based interference account, which links children���s errors to the same memory mechanisms involved in sentence processing difficulties observed in adults. These predictions are borne out, supporting a more continuous developmental trajectory as children���s processing mechanisms become more resistant to interference. Finally, I consider how children���s errors might influence their acquisition of adjunct control, given the distribution in the linguistic input. I discuss the results of a corpus analysis, including the possibility that adjunct control could be learned from the input. The kinds of information that could be useful to a learner become much more limited, however, after considering the processing limitations that would interfere with the representations available to the learner.

Trabalhar com a matem��tica em educa����o de inf��ncia

Este estudo tem como principal objetivo compreender e analisar o modo como crian��as de creche e jardim-de-inf��ncia resolvem problemas matem��ticos e o que pode constranger a resolu����o. Em particular, procurei analisar a atividade matem��tica que as crian��as desenvolvem quando se confrontam com problemas matem��ticos e os desafios com que se deparam. Do ponto de vista metodol��gico, o estudo enquadra-se numa abordagem qualitativa de investiga����o e num paradigma interpretativo. Al��m disso, trata-se de uma investiga����o-a����o orientada pela quest��o ���como otimizar a atividade de resolver problemas matem��ticos em contextos de educa����o de inf��ncia?���. Neste ��mbito, propus a quatro crian��as de creche e a 21 de jardim-de-inf��ncia um conjunto de tarefas selecionadas para, potencialmente, terem, para si, algum grau de desafio. Os principais m��todos de recolha de dados foram a observa����o participante, a an��lise documental e um inqu��rito por question��rio realizado ��s educadoras cooperantes. O estudo ilustra que �� poss��vel envolver crian��as de creche e de jardim-de-inf��ncia numa atividade de resolu����o de problemas matem��ticos e que esta atividade �� favorecida se o contexto dos problemas estiver pr��ximo do que fazem no dia-a-dia da sala. Durante o processo de resolu����o das tarefas propostas, foram mobilizadas e trabalhadas diversas no����es matem��ticas. Na creche, todas as crian��as evidenciaram possuir conhecimentos acerca da no����o topol��gica ���dentro de��� e ���fora de��� e algumas foram bem-sucedidas no uso do processo de classifica����o, tendo em conta um crit��rio. Neste ��mbito, recorreram a representa����es ativas. No jardim-de-inf��ncia, todas as crian��as conseguiram fazer a contagem sincronizada das letras do seu nome, de indicar a quantidade de letras, o que indicia o conhecimento da no����o de cardinal, e de representar esta quantidade recorrendo tanto a numerais como a representa����es ic��nicas. Al��m disso, foram capazes de interpretar uma tabela de modo a construir um gr��fico com barras e de elaborar um pictograma, o que revela possu��rem conhecimentos ao n��vel da literacia estat��stica. Por ��ltimo, algumas crian��as foram bem-sucedidas na descoberta de estrat��gias de resolu����o de problemas que lhes permitiram inventariar exaustivamente todas as possibilidades de resolu����o e contar, organizadamente, estas possibilidades. No decurso desta atividade surgiram tentativas de generaliza����o, embora nem sempre corretas, sobressaindo o recurso a representa����es ativas nomeadamente �� dramatiza����o de situa����es. Quanto aos desafios com que se depararam destacam-se, no caso da creche, o uso correto do processo de classifica����o. No caso do jardim-de-inf��ncia, as crian��as demonstraram dificuldades em distinguir a legenda do pictograma dos dados, em resolver um problema em que estava em jogo o sentido combinat��rio da multiplica����o e em encontrar estrat��gias de generaliza����o. O estudo indicia, ainda, que �� essencial que o educador proponha tarefas diversificadas e desafiantes que, partindo sempre da curiosidade e interesse das crian��as, lhes permitam trabalhar com ideias matem��ticas importantes e representar adequadamente o conhecimento com que lidam.

EGCL: an extended G-Code Language with flow control, functions and mnemonic variables

In the context of computer numerical control (CNC) and computer aided manufacturing (CAM), the capabilities of programming languages such as symbolic and intuitive programming, program portability and geometrical portfolio have special importance -- They allow to save time and to avoid errors during part programming and permit code re-usage -- Our updated literature review indicates that the current state of art presents voids in parametric programming, program portability and programming flexibility -- In response to this situation, this article presents a compiler implementation for EGCL (Extended G-code Language), a new, enriched CNC programming language which allows the use of descriptive variable names, geometrical functions and flow-control statements (if-then-else, while) -- Our compiler produces low-level generic, elementary ISO-compliant Gcode, thus allowing for flexibility in the choice of the executing CNC machine and in portability -- Our results show that readable variable names and flow control statements allow a simplified and intuitive part programming and permit re-usage of the programs -- Future work includes allowing the programmer to define own functions in terms of EGCL, in contrast to the current status of having them as library built-in functions

Physical activity assessment in the general population; instrumental methods and new technologies.

La medici��n objetiva del movimiento humano y la cuantificaci��n del gasto energ��tico debido a la actividad f��sica es una necesidad identificada tanto en investigaci��n como en cl��nica. Los m��todos de referencia validados y bien definidos (el agua doblemente marcada, la calorimetr��a directa, la calorimetr��a indirecta) son caros y pr��cticamente se limitan a la investigaci��n en el laboratorio. Por lo tanto, en los ��ltimos a��os, se han desarrollado diferentes dispositivos de medici��n objetiva que son apropiados para los estudios de campo y cl��nicos. No hay ning��n est��ndar de oro entre ellos, ya que todos tienen limitaciones. Los pod��metros son ligeros, poco costosos, cuentan los pasos y aportan informaci��n sobre la actividad f��sica total, pero no sobre el comportamiento y los patrones de actividad f��sica. Los aceler��metros son caros, aportan informaci��n sobre patr��n, frecuencia e intensidad de la actividad f��sica, pero no sobre el tipo de actividad f��sica. Los pod��metros y aceler��metros ��nicamente recogen informaci��n sobre el movimiento del movimiento corporal, pero la validez en la estimaci��n del gasto energ��tico es limitada. La monitorizaci��n de la frecuencia card��aca relaciona intensidad del ejercicio con gasto de energ��a, pero no aporta informaci��n sobre la actividad f��sica. Los dispositivos GPS son port��tiles, relativamente asequibles, no invasivos y recogen distancia, velocidad y elevaci��n con hora y lugar exactos, pero quiz��s est��n limitados para la evaluaci��n de movimientos cortos de alta intensidad y elevado gasto energ��tico. Los dispositivos de ��ltima generaci��n combinan acelerometr��a con la medici��n de variables fisiol��gicas, comparten las ventajas de los dispositivos individuales y son m��s precisos. Para el c��lculo del gasto energ��tico se aplican algoritmos espec��ficos de la actividad incluidos en el software del fabricante que pueden afectar a los resultados. La mayor��a de los dispositivos estiman con mayor precisi��n el gasto energ��tico a intensidades ligeras y moderadas, pero subestiman el gasto a intensidades muy ligeras y de mayor intensidad.

Pseudospectral methods and numerical continuation for the analysis os structured population models.

191 p.

Technology, mining methods and landscapes of a placer mining district in Fairbanks, Alaska, 1900-1930

Placer miners in Alaska���s interior were part of the last great gold rush in North America. As word of gold in the Fairbanks Mining District traveled down the Yukon River, a wave of miners from the Klondike placer fields in Dawson, along with a assortment of speculators and inexperienced green horns from the Lower 48 converged on the confluence of the Tanana and Chena rivers hoping to strike it rich. The steamers coming from Dawson were integral; they carried miners with experience working the frozen subarctic placer deposits of the Klondike. These miners encountered new environmental challenges that required the development of new technologies and mining methods to efficiently harvest gold. These methods and machines were brought into Fairbanks and further perfected to account for the local conditions. This thesis describes the local mining technologies and methods employed in the Fairbanks district and the landscape patterns created during the placer mining boom years of 1903-1909, decline years of 1910-1923 and recovery of 1923-1930.

Control of citrus black spot (Guignardia citricarpa) by biological control agents and other alternative products.

2007

Development of Core Design Methods and Tools for Gen-IV Heavy Liquid Metal Cooled Reactors

Heavy Liquid Metal Cooled Reactors are among the concepts, fostered by the GIF, as potentially able to comply with stringent safety, economical, sustainability, proliferation resistance and physical protection requirements. The increasing interest around these innovative systems has highlighted the lack of tools specifically dedicated to their core design stage. The present PhD thesis summarizes the three years effort of, partially, closing the mentioned gap, by rationally defining the role of codes in core design and by creating a development methodology for core design-oriented codes (DOCs) and its subsequent application to the most needed design areas. The covered fields are, in particular, the fuel assembly thermal-hydraulics and the fuel pin thermo-mechanics. Regarding the former, following the established methodology, the sub-channel code ANTEO+ has been conceived. Initially restricted to the forced convection regime and subsequently extended to the mixed one, ANTEO+, via a thorough validation campaign, has been demonstrated a reliable tool for design applications. Concerning the fuel pin thermo-mechanics, the will to include safety-related considerations at the outset of the pin dimensioning process, has given birth to the safety-informed DOC TEMIDE. The proposed DOC development methodology has also been applied to TEMIDE; given the complex interdependence patterns among the numerous phenomena involved in an irradiated fuel pin, to optimize the code final structure, a sensitivity analysis has been performed, in the anticipated application domain. The development methodology has also been tested in the verification and validation phases; the latter, due to the low availability of experiments truly representative of TEMIDE's application domain, has only been a preliminary attempt to test TEMIDE's capabilities in fulfilling the DOC requirements upon which it has been built. In general, the capability of the proposed development methodology for DOCs in delivering tools helping the core designer in preliminary setting the system configuration has been proven.

Methods and tools for analysis and management of risks and regulatory compliance in the healthcare sector: the hospital at home ��� HaH

Changing or creating an organisation means creating a new process. Each process involves many risks that need to be identified and managed. The main risks considered here are procedural and legal risks. The former are related to the risks of errors that may occur during processes, while the latter are related to the compliance of processes with regulations. Managing the risks implies proposing changes to the processes that allow the desired result: an optimised process. In order to manage a company and optimise it in the best possible way, not only should the organisational aspect, risk management and legal compliance be taken into account, but it is important that they are all analysed simultaneously with the aim of finding the right balance that satisfies them all. This is the aim of this thesis, to provide methods and tools to balance these three characteristics, and to enable this type of optimisation, ICT support is used. This work isn���t a thesis in computer science or law, but rather an interdisciplinary thesis. Most of the work done so far is vertical and in a specific domain. The particularity and aim of this thesis is not to carry out an in-depth analysis of a particular aspect, but rather to combine several important aspects, normally analysed separately, which however have an impact and influence each other. In order to carry out this kind of interdisciplinary analysis, the knowledge base of both areas was involved and the combination and collaboration of different experts in the various fields was necessary. Although the methodology described is generic and can be applied to all sectors, the case study considered is a new type of healthcare service that allows patients in acute disease to be hospitalised to their home. This provide the possibility to perform experiments using real hospital database.

Methods and tools to foster territorial approaches for the assessment of food supply chains

The challenges of the current global food systems are often framed around feeding the world's growing population while meeting sustainable development for future generations. Globalization has brought to a fragmentation of food spaces, leading to a flexible and mutable supply chain. This poses a major challenge to food and nutrition security, affecting also rural-urban dynamics in territories. Furthermore, the recent crises have highlighted the vulnerability to shocks and disruptions of the food systems and the eco-system due to the intensive management of natural, human and economic capital. Hence, a sustainable and resilient transition of the food systems is required through a multi-faceted approach that tackles the causes of unsustainability and promotes sustainable practices at all levels of the food system. In this respect, a territorial approach becomes a relevant entry point of analysis for the food system���s multifunctionality and can support the evaluation of sustainability by quantifying impacts associated with quantitative methods and understanding the territorial responsibility of different actors with qualitative ones. Against this background the present research aims to i) investigate the environmental, costing and social indicators suitable for a scoring system able to measure the integrated sustainability performance of food initiatives within the City/Region territorial context; ii) develop a territorial assessment framework to measure sustainability impacts of agricultural systems; and iii) define an integrated methodology to match production and consumption at a territorial level to foster a long-term vision of short food supply chains. From a methodological perspective, the research proposes a mixed quantitative and qualitative research method. The outcomes provide an in-depth view into the environmental and socio-economic impacts of food systems at the territorial level, investigating possible indicators, frameworks, and business strategies to foster their future sustainable development.

Identification of nurses` competencies in primary health care through a Delphi study in southern Brazil

Objective: This investigation aimed to identify and analyze the general and specific competencies of nurses in the primary health care practice of Brazil. Design: The Delphi Technique was used as the method of study. Sample: 2 groups of participants were selected: One contained primary health care nurses (n=52) and the other specialists (n=57), including public health nurses and public or community health faculty. Measurements: 3 questionnaires were developed for the study. The first asked participants to indicate general and specific competencies, which were compiled into a list for each group. A Likert scale of 1-5 was added to these 2 lists in the second and third questionnaires. A consensus criterion of 75% for score 4 or 5 was adopted. Results: In the nurses` group, 17 general and 8 specific competencies reached the consensus criterion; 19 general and 9 specific competencies reached the criterion in the specialists` group. These competencies were classified into 10 domains: professional values, communication, teamwork, management, community-oriented, health promotion, problem solving, health care, and education and basic public health sciences. Conclusions: These competencies reflect Brazilian health policy and constitute a reference for health professional practice and education.